


Modern Love: Taishi's Turn

by addicted_2_manga



Series: Modern Love: A MikuTsuru AU [3]
Category: Servamp (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Boss/Employee Relationship, Demisexual Touma, Developing Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-05
Updated: 2020-01-05
Packaged: 2021-02-24 23:08:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22125982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/addicted_2_manga/pseuds/addicted_2_manga
Summary: A side story to my MikuTsuru AU Modern Love. Tsurugi seems to have found love, at last (much to Taishi's relief). Now that Taishi is not focused on worrying about his wild little brother, he has more time to focus on himself. That doesn't exactly lead to anything he'd deem "good", however, as he realises that he might have feelings... for his boss.
Relationships: Touma Taishi/Shirota Tooru
Series: Modern Love: A MikuTsuru AU [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1592491
Kudos: 4





	Modern Love: Taishi's Turn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taishi Kamiya comes home after a long work week to mull over a certain problem he has... namely, the feelings he is developing for his department director at work. 
> 
> Meanwhile, Tooru Shirota is in his apartment, wondering if it worth the risk to ask out one of his department managers at work. 
> 
> They both have to ask themselves if it's a mistake worth making.

_**Taishi’s Side:** _

Taishi walked into an empty house. He took off his shoes and lined them up by the door before setting down his briefcase and taking another look around. _‘Tsurugi must be out with Mikuni,’_ he concluded. Thinking of the shameless flirt out on a date with his boyfriend spurred a genuine smile on Taishi’s face, despite the weariness he felt deep down in his bones. 

“It’s about time you gave me a reprieve from the stress.” A small chuckle escaped the businessman’s mouth as he strode over into the kitchen. He slipped out of his suit jacket and hung it over the back of a dining chair before reaching up to loosen his tie and undo the top button of his dress shirt. “A Friday night all to myself… just what I need, I suppose.” He padded over to cabinet and retrieved a snifter. He needed a drink; not only to unwind from a long day at work, but also merey to enjoy as he mulled over a problem.

He muttered under his breath as he relaxed into the well-loved recliner in the living room. “What an interesting situation you’ve found yourself in.” Bringing the glass up to his lips, he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath of the whiskey’s rich, oaky fragrance. He rolled the glass against his lower lip a moment, enjoying the smooth sensation against his skin before finally tilting it back and taking his first sip. As always, he took a certain satisfaction in the sharp bite of the alcohol as it fell down his throat. Taishi indulged so rarely that a snifter of scotch always felt a special reward and he absolutely relished the simple pleasure. 

Much to his chagrin, it was only seconds before a familiar face flashed behind his eyelids and disturbed his peaceful drink. He pulled the glass from his lips and flung his eyes open wide. “How exactly did I let this happen,” he asked himself in clear distaste. “I am far too professional to do something as foolish as fall in love with my department director.” Taishi had to click his tongue in disbelief.

Not only had he never been one to concern himself with such trivial concerns as dating or, as Tsurugi called it, ‘hooking up’, the older Kamiya had never thought of himself as one to use the term “fall in love”. Their parents had seen to that. The deep scars that riddled Taishi’s psyche, thanks to them, had always proven the most effective barrier to such useless emotions. Tsurugi was the only person for whom the severe brunet harboured any manner of affection. 

That is, Tsurugi _had_ been the only person.

In the four months since the Kamiya brothers had relocated to Tokyo, that had changed- so slowly as to escape Taishi’s notice until it had already become too late.

“Damn him.” Taishi groaned as he sunk back into the recliner. “That fool, Shirota. This is entirely his fault.” The frustrated businessman let his eyes fall shut again and took a greedy gulp from his glass.

  
  


_**Toru’s Side:** _

“Home sweet home.” Toru closed and locked the door behind himself before slipping out of his shoes and shrugging off his suit jacket. He hung his keys up on a hook by the door, and stepped down the entry hall, to toss his suit jacket into the hamper in his laundry room. He continued down the hall to his bedroom, smiling fondly at the pictures hung up on the wall- portraits and candid shots of his sister and nephew. “I sure do miss them,” he thought aloud, “we’ll have to get together soon.” He gave a determined nod of his head as he turned into his bedroom to get undressed. “I’ll call tomorrow.” 

Toru lounged on his couch- all freshened up and comfortable in the simple cotton pyjamas his nephew Mahiru had picked out for him. The television was on, but the preoccupied executive was wholly unaware of what he was watching. Something else weighed too heavily on his mind at the moment. He had never been the sort of man to have regrets. He felt that even mistakes had some worth in the end. After a long work week, however, the simple man couldn’t deny his simple truth: he was lonely. If he had to own up to any regret, he’d cite the fact that he’d always been too busy for relationships. 

A soft, slightly goofy smile snuck across the brunet’s lips as he thought of the new manager that had been transferred in some months ago. Kamiya Taishi was a couple steps down from Toru’s own position, but might as well have been hired on as his direct subordinate with how hard the man worked. A small chuckle escaped as Toru easily admitted to himself that he wouldn't mind working closer with the enigmatic brunet either. The industrious manager had an almost severe beauty to his features- one which perfectly fit with the man’s austere personality. He was not disliked in the department. He was, in fact, respected for his work ethic and insight, but no-one cared to get familiar with Taishi; and Taishi seemed quite content with that. He himself made no attempt to hide the distance he kept from the rest of the department. From everybody, that was, except Toru. The way Taishi had slowly but surely begun opening up, only to him, had not escaped the department director’s notice. Toru could not help but feel flattered, and a bit intrigued. He also found it embarrassingly cute how Taishi seemed to have no self-awareness.

After four months, the stoic, steely-eyed brunet that once gave merely a curt nod of acknowledgement now greeted Toru with a slight smile and a suspiciously careful “Shirota Kacho”. Taishi seemed oddly on edge anytime the two of them found themselves alone together, and whenever the department went drinking, Taishi always seemed to be right at Toru’s side. What had impressed Toru the most, however, was when Taishi began to talk about his little brother, Tsurugi. 

To be fair, Toru did not know much. He knew what Tsurugi looked like- a drunken Taishi had once shown him a few pictures. Toru knew that Taishi was Tsurugi’s legal guardian, and had raised the boy himself after their parents passed away. Toru knew that Taishi worried about his brother constantly, but felt as if he could finally relax as Tsurugi had recently begun dating someone. Most of all, Toru understood what a distinction it was for him to know even the most minute detail about his secretive co-worker’s little brother. It made Toru feel special, and a little enamoured. If the man was honest with himself, it was Taishi’s clear devotion to his brother that had sealed Toru’s fate. For Shirota Toru, a strong love for family had always been the single most attractive thing in a potential partner. 

“He really is very handsome,” Toru thought aloud as he absently fingered the top button of his pyjama shirt. “I haven’t felt this way about someone in a long time. Would it really be that big of a mistake to see where this could go?” The less than favourable fact that they were boss and subordinate flitted through his mind, but Toru forced that thought off to the side. More than anything, he did not want to end up with another nagging regret. Steeling his nerves, he got up from the couch to retrieve his cell phone from the other room. 

  
  


**_Taishi and Toru:_ **

Taishi didn’t realise he’d fallen asleep until the shrill ringtone of his cell phone yanked him back to reality. He got up quickly and walked into the kitchen, to fish his phone out of his suit jacket. Still groggy, he picked up without even so much as a glance at the screen and muttered. “Tsurugi?”

There was a short pause on the other end, followed by a small chuckle, before an entirely different familiar voice began talking. “Kamiya-san. It’s Shirota. Is everything okay? You sound strange.”

Taishi had never woken up faster than he did in that second. He immediately straightened his back and stood attentively, as if the man on the other end could actually see him. He cleared his throat and tried to speak smoothly into the phone. “Shirota Kacho. Nothing is wrong. I fell asleep on the couch,” he laughed awkwardly. “I’m so used to coming to Tsurugi’s rescue that I assumed it was him calling… since I wasn’t quite awake yet.” 

“Is this a bad time? I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

Taishi’s eyes rounded, and he quickly interjected, forcing himself to relax and keep his voice calm. “This is not a disturbance at all. I didn’t intend to fall asleep. I must have been more tired than I thought after a long week.”

Another chuckle came across from the other end, its warmth and good humour echoing in Taishi’s head. “I can understand that. Work can get pretty tough sometimes, huh?” There was a slight pause, and then Toru’s voice came through in a quieter, almost shy tone. “You do very good work, Kamiya-san.”

The bewildered brunet’s breath caught in his throat as a soft blush began to bloom across his cheeks. He cleared his throat again. “Thank you.” Taishi started moving back into the living room. He found his legs were starting to feel a bit weak. _‘Everything about this is ridiculous,’_ he thought to himself as he felt the blush spread down to his neck. _‘What exactly are you doing?’_ He plopped down onto the couch with a quiet sigh. “Shirota Kacho… are you calling about work? Is there a project I can help with?”

This time, there was a sharp intake of breath of the other line, as if Toru were preparing himself. “No, that’s not it. I wanted to see if you were free for drinks tomorrow evening.”

A sudden warmth spread all throughout Taishi’s body- his skin prickling from the rush of blood. He was too shocked to realise he had just gasped quite obviously into the phone. _‘Don’t get ahead of yourself,’_ his mind hissed. He licked his lips nervously before speaking, in an unconsciously hopeful voice. “You mean that the department is going drinking, correct? Shirota Kacho?”

“N-no,” Toru stammered on the other end. “I uh- wanted to invite you to the bar… just us.”

Taishi bit back a surprised grunt and fell back against the couch, completely stunned. After a few moments, he was able to answer. “I _am_ free tomorrow evening,” he stated dumbly. “I would gladly join you.” He winced at his own awkwardness.

Having apparently forgotten that Taishi could hear him, Toru let out a blatant sigh of relief. When he spoke, his voice had taken back it’s confidently cheerful tone. “Wonderful. Just one more thing, Kamiya-san.”

“Yes?”

“Outside of a work context, I’d like you to be less formal. Is that…” Toru’s voice seemed to grow thicker, “okay with you?”

Taishi pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it in bemusement, as if it could explain to him just what exactly was happening. Hesitantly, he put it back to his ear, and forced out an answer. “Yes.”

When he replied, Toru’s voice remained low and rich, eliciting all kinds of strange new feelings for the astonished brunet on the other end of the line. “So, tomorrow? Usual place? 19:00?”

“Yes, Shirota-san.” Taishi was amazed to hear his own voice roll off his tongue in a matching silky tone. “I look forward to it.”

“Thank you, Kamiya-san. I guess we’ll see each other tomorrow, then.” 

The click on the other end of the line came so quickly that Taishi could feel his director’s nerves. He could only imagine they were just as bad as his own. As he ended the call on his own end, his head swam. “Wh-what exactly did I just agree to,” he stammered as he put his phone down on the coffee table. He only then realised that his heart was racing and that he felt overheated. He took off his tie and dumped it absently on the table, next to his phone. As he undid another button of his shirt, he became aware of the airy smile that played at the corners of his mouth. “Why does this make me feel so… happy?”

It was just at that moment that the front door swept open and Tsurugi breezed in with a deeply satisfied look on his face. The younger brunet didn’t bother looking at his brother until he had closed the door and slipped out of his shoes. Once he did rest his gaze on Taishi’s flushed face, however, a certain mirth began to dance about his golden eyes. 

“My oh my, what have we here.” He all but sang out in impish glee as he came to sit with his brother. “Tai-chan, I would know that look anywhere, on any face.” He sat with his body turned inwards and gave his brother a comforting pat on the back. He put forth his best effort not to show just how amusing he found the current situation. “Why don’t you tell Tsuru-chan all about them, hmmmm?”

_to be continued?_


End file.
